Just a year after releasing his debut album, Aerial, Dave Huismans is back for more with his sophomore long-player under the 2562 moniker, Unbalance. So far the the critical consensus has been that Aerial was overcast and perhaps a bit brooding while Unbalance is chipper and full of color, but those looking for a smile should head elsewhere. Indeed, Unbalance does find Huismans allowing the most color yet into his steely palate, but more than any other dubstep album this year it demands you sit down and listen; there will be time for dancing later. An appropriate title as any, Huismans’ beats are rough and shattered, tipping every which way while defeated synths descend in their own time.

As I loaded Tectonic Plates Vol. 2 into my playlist, the artists who appeared one by one were a “who’s who” of dubstep producers who have made waves and splashes in the scene this year. Joker’s inclusion immediately caught my attention, and may do so for many people because of his recent Hyperdub debut. Also gracing the tracklist are heavyweights Benga and Skream, as well as a couple of LWE favorites, 2562 and Martyn kicking things off. Rounding out the compilation are then Flying Lotus, Moving Ninja, Peverlelist, Shed, and RSD. Last but not least and the one who facilitated this impressive lineup is Pinch, whose Tectonic label the compilation appears on.

Bristol-based American James Ginzberg has masqueraded as 30Hz for the past few years, producing crowd pleasing breakbeat numbers and putting them out on his Vertical Sound label. Given his involvement in the founding of seminal dubstep label Tectonic, however, his interest in fare less likely to hit number one on Beatport has been there to see for anyone who cared to look. His new project, Emptyset, probes a sound most easily described as Monolake gone to Bristol. The first two EPs, released on the Future Days imprint, have so far failed quite to hit the mark, but nevertheless forged a distinctive tone consisting of sparse and monochromatic minimal informed by the ever ebullient voice of Bristol bass.